Zach and his family go to the beach, but Zach is having a lousy day. First, he dropped his toothbrush in the toilet. Then his best friend went to someone else's birthday party instead of joining him. But most frustrating of all, he can't get his kite to fly! Zach kicks sand, yells angry words, and asks his dad if they can just go home.

Instead, his dad teaches him a simple, three-step approach to dealing with frustration so he can find a way to enjoy himself even when things aren't going his way:

Name it (why are you frustrated?)
Tame it (self-regulation exercises such as deep breathing or visualization)
Reframe it (change your thoughts to change your feelings).

Zach Gets Frustrated teaches children social skills they will easily understand and remember when dealing with frustration. The three-point strategy is presented as the three corners of a triangle and is illustrated using the corners of Zach's kite.

Zach Rules Series
Zach struggles with social issues like getting along, handling frustrations, making mistakes, and other everyday problems typical of young kids. Each book in the Zach Rules series presents a single, simple storyline involving one such problem. As each story develops, Zach and readers learn straightforward tools for coping with their struggles and building stronger relationships now and in the future.

Instead, his dad teaches him a simple, three-step approach to dealing with frustration so he can find a way to enjoy himself even when things aren't going his way:

Name it (why are you frustrated?)
Tame it (self-regulation exercises such as deep breathing or visualization)
Reframe it (change your thoughts to change your feelings).